2024 Le Clarence de Haut Brion

Darker fruited in a way than La Chapelle, perhaps a little creamier and glossier, more floral with blooms of hibiscus and a little pink rose petal too, more and more in fact with aeration. Ample, generous and gentle on the opening, almost pushing the cheeks and quite lush for the vintage in the mid-palate. Aerial and lifted, if without the full delineation and detail and complexity of Haut-Brion itself. Very attractive and with a lovely uplift of fresh darker berry fruit notes in the midst of the palate, like the fountain outside the tasting room. But a sense a touch of dryness on the finish.

Deep garnet-purple colored. Skips out with cheery notes of fresh blackberries and black raspberries, giving way to hints of rose bud tea, cardamom, and fallen leaves. The light to medium-bodied palate is satiny and light on its feet, featuring red berry layers and chalky tannins, finishing lifted.

Fresh and perfumed with elegant notes of dark berries, spices, licorice and lead pencil, the 2024 Le Clarence de Haut-Brion possesses a medium-bodied, firm and slightly introverted palate with firm tannins and a long, mulberries-inflected finish. The blend—45.7% Merlot, 32.3% Cabernet Sauvignon and 22% Cabernet Franc—features one of the highest proportions of Cabernet Franc since 2006.